Appliance for use in the teaching of arithmetic



ING OF ARITHMETIC March 14, 1939. c. KUIPER v APPLIANCE FOR USE IN THE TEACH Filed April 2, 1936 0 m I; 2'4 5'4 22 M Z4 Patented Mar. 14, 1939 UNITED STATES Cornelis Kuiper, Zetten, Netherlands, assignor to Johannes Iddink, Ede, Netherlands Application April 2, 1936, Serial No. 72,416 In the Netherlands April 18, 1935 2 Claims.

The invention relates to an appliance to be used in the teaching of arithmetic.

The purpose of the invention is to provide an appliance which will help to give the pupils a better and clearer idea of the formation and the composition of the results of the addition and subtraction of different numbers, than has been possible to obtain with the aid of the devices hitherto known and in which the position of the figures in connection with their denominationa-l order'as units, tens or hundreds is clearly indicated.

According to the invention the appliance consists of a table which is subdivided by a partil5 tion into a left and a right table compartment,

and a number of elements for each compartment, said elements being slidable and tiltable and unsymmetrically arranged on horizontal rods passing in front of and along the corresponding compartment, the elements of the left compartment, having an equal size among themselves and being larger than those of the right compartment, and a shelf located at right angles on the surface of the table is arranged on the outer end of each compartment under each rod and over a portion of said compartment, in such a manner. that the elements above the said shelves may only be displaced along the rods in a position perpendicular to the table and kept an: by the shelves in the said position, as well above as below the rod a partition is arranged, which partitions are perpendicular to the surface of the table and which are lying over the other portion of each rod by which partitions the elements are supported in their tilted up and tilted down position in-such a manner that they are at an acute angle with the surface of the table.

According to the invention the elements may be of a rectangular shape and arranged in such 40 a manner on the rods, that the one short side of the element is nearer to the rod than the other short side and one surface of each element has a color which strongly differs from the color of the table.

The invention will now be further explained by way of example by means of an embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

Fig. 1 represents a front elevation of an appliance for use in classroom teaching.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 11-11 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on the line IIIIII in Fig. l.

The appliance for classroom instruction as indicated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 consists of a table I which is divided into two compartments 3 and 4 by means of a partition 2. The table may be hung facing the pupils by means of hooks 5 or in some other suitable manner. Next to each of the two compartments 3 and 4 respectively there is provided a space 6 and 1 respectively for storing the elements.

In connection with the manner of indicating the figures of which the number consists the compartment 3 on the table is to serve for the tens and the compartment 4 for the units.

Partitions 8, 9 are provided at the side edges of the board. In the compartment 3 three rods it, ll, !2 are mounted between the partitions 2 and. 8, whereas in compartment 4 six rods l3, l4, l5, l6, l1, 18 are mounted between the partitions 2 and 9. The rods of compartment 3, as well as those of compartment 6 therefore extend through the respective spaces ii and l for storing the elements. Above and below each rod there are provided partitions which do not extend into the storing spaces. These partitions are perpendicular to the surface of the table I. In compartment 3 said partitions are indicated by Hi and 26 and in compartment 4 by 2! and 22.

In the spaces 6 and l for storing the elements there is provided under each rod a member 23 or 2%, said member, in the embodiments illustrated in the drawing, being formed by a shelf perpendicular to the table I.

Each of the rods lll to 12 carries five elements 25, 26, 21, 28 and 29, while each of the rods 13 to Hi carries five elements 30, 3!, 32, 33, 3 3.

Each of the elements to 29 represents a ten, whereas each element 30 to 34 represents a unit.

In order to enable the pupil to form a clear idea of a quantity, the dimensions of the elements representing the tens are made larger than those representing the units. Moreover each of the elements 30 to 34 is provided with a single hollow or raised spot, a so-called pip which may be colored so as to contrast with its background. In the same manner each element 25 to 29 on one of its faces is provided with ten of such pips. Both by the difference in size of the elements and by the number of pips on the same, it will be made easy for the pupil to register the images of the difierent values in his brain center.

With the appliance according to Figs. 1-3 the elements for the units as well as for the tens are of a rectangular form and are arranged slidably and tiltab-ly on the rods Hi to: H2 and I3 to [8 respectively. The axis on which said elements are tilted runs parallel to the short sides of the rectangle, but at unequal distances from said sides.

When the appliance is to be used in the arithmetic class, all the elements, those for the tens, as well as those for the units are first placed into their respective storing places 5, l. The elements are then resting horizontally on the members Z3 and 24 respectively. As the side surfaces of the elements are of the same color as the background, they will be almost invisible and so to say outside of the range of vision.

If, for example, the number one is to be brought tothe fore, an element St is pushed from the storing place towards the left and tilted upwardly. By means of the strongly contrasting pip provided on the said element, the image of the number is clearly presented to the pupil. Other numbers are represented in the same manner.

If, for instance, the number twenty-eight is to be illustrated, two elements 25, 26 are pushed towards the right out of their storing space 6 over the rod It and tilted upwardly, the five elements 30 to 34 inclusive are pushed towards the left over the rod 13 and the three elements 1 30 to 32 inclusive are pushed towards the left over the rod l4 and all of them are then tilted upwardly. There will then be visible two elements 25 and 26 each carrying ten pips and eight elements carrying one pip each, so that the number twenty-eight may be written down at once.

If, for instance, the numbers 2 and 3 are to be added together, two elements may be moved to the left over the rod l3 and three elements over the rod I l and then tilted upwardly. On account of the pips of a contrasting color provided on the elements, the five units will be strongly visualized.

There is no objection to showing the two quantities together on the rod l 3, but in that case they are to be kept a little apart.

Now it is assumed that fifteen should be deducted from twenty-eight. In the appliance illustrated in the figures two elements 25, 25 are brought into the left compartment 3 by which the place of the tens has been defined and in the right compartment 4 eight elements indicating the units. Then all blocks have been tilted upwardly. Now the number fifteen should be deducted from twenty-eight or in other words one tens and five units. To this end the element 26 is tilted downward and at the same time five elements in the right compartment 4.

In order to make it clear to the pupil that the elements which indicate the number subtracted (the subtrahend) do not count any more, the elements for the units and for the tens have a color, which strongly differs from that of the table, at the back, e. g. blue, Now it is clearly to be seen by what number the number 28 has been decreased, whereas the elements which have been tilted upwardly indicate also very clearly the result and at the same time the place of the tens and the units.

With the device according to Figs. 1-3 only five elements are to be placed on each row, i. e. on each rod Ill-l2 and l3-l8. It is obvious that the appliance may also be constructed so that ten elements will lie in a row. Elements representing hundreds may also be added to the appliances.

I claim:

1. An appliance for use in the teaching of arithmetic, comprising a table which is subdivided by a partition into a left and a right table compartment, a number of elements for each compartment, horizontal rods passing in front of and along the corresponding compartment on which said elements are slidable, tiltable and unsymmetrically arranged, the elements of the left compartment, being of equal size, are larger than the equal sized elements of the right compartment, a shelf located at right angles to the surface of the table being arranged at the outer end of each compartment under each rod and over a portion of said compartment, in such a manner, that the elements above the said shelves may only be displaced along the rods in a position perpendicular to the table and kept by the shelves in the said position, a partition arranged above and below each rod, said partitions being perpendicular to the surface of the table and lying over the other portion of each rod whereby the elements are supported by said partitions in their tilted up and tilted down position in such a manner that they are at an acute angle with the surface of the table.

2. An appliance according to claim 1, in which the elements are of a rectangular shape and arranged in such a manner on the rods, that the one short side of the element is nearer to the rod than the other short side and one surface of each element has a color which strongly differs from the color of the table.

CORNELIS KUIPER. 

